Contributed by Erica Schreckenghaust – The WineSense Club had the honor of welcoming back the dynamic duo behind SommSelect; Ian Cauble and Brandon Carneiro. They first met in 1999 at Sonoma State University and were part of the students who created the WineSense Club in 2000. Ian studied Business and Spanish, while Brandon studied Economics. Years late they reconnected in Las Vegas where Brandon was a fine wine salesman and Ian was attempting to become a Master Sommelier, which is depicted in the documentary, SOMM.

Brandon and Ian decided to launch SommSelect in 2014, where they have daily offerings of wines from all over the world with tasting notes, region information and even food pairings. SommSelect offers the knowledge of a Sommelier to everyone at every budget.

Ian Leads Wine Tasting at SSU

Ian led over 45 students through a tasting that featured a 2007 Winniger Rottgen Riesling Spatlese from Mosel, Germany and a 2011 Mendel Malbec from Mendoza Argentina. Ian walked students through the proper way to taste, the different descriptors, and how to tell the different wine varietals apart, based only on taste.

We then put our skills to the test as we participated in a blind tasting of our own. Students had to identify which two varietals were served and from what area. These two wines were a 2013 Ehlers Sauvignon Blanc from St. Helena and Right Bank Bordeaux from France.

Favorites of the Evening

With an overwhelming amount of votes the Riesling and Malbec that Ian picked out were the favorites of the night. It was an amazing and inspiring tasting that students will not forget any time soon and we can’t thank Ian and Brandon enough for coming!